Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

NHL roundup: Sidney Crosby picks up 21st, Penguins throttle Coyotes 7-0

Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Matt Murray, center, stops a shot by Arizona Coyotes' Brendan Perlini, right, with Brian Dumoulin defending in the second period of an NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Monday, Dec. 12, 2016. (Gene J. Puskar / Associated Press)
Associated Press

Sidney Crosby left briefly after taking a stick to the face then returned and picked up his NHL-leading 21st goal as the Pittsburgh Penguins crushed the visiting Arizona Coyotes 7-0 on Monday night.

Bryan Rust, Scott Wilson, Trevor Daley, Phil Kessel, Nick Bonino and Justin Schultz also scored for the Penguins, who won their season-high sixth straight by throttling the struggling Coyotes to celebrate coach Mike Sullivan’s first-year on the job in style. Matt Murray finished with 32 saves while picking up his third career shutout.

Arizona’s Mike Smith, the lone bright spot for a team with the fewest victories in the league, stopped 18 of 22 shots before being pulled midway through the second period. The Coyotes are 1-4-3 in their last eight games.

Boston 2, Montreal 1 (OT): Ryan Spooner scored in overtime and his goal withstood a video review, lifting the Bruins over the Canadiens in Montreal.

Spooner got his goal 3:20 into OT on a partial breakaway off a nice give-and-go with Torey Krug. Montreal challenged, claiming Spooner was offside, but the goal stood.

Austin Czarnik also scored for the Bruins, and Tuukka Rask made 30 saves while Boston handed Montreal a rare home loss.

Paul Byron scored late in the third period to salvage a point for the Canadiens. Carey Price stopped 27 shots in defeat, just his fifth loss in 21 starts this season.

David Krejci appeared to give the Bruins a victory 59 seconds into overtime, but officials determined David Pastrnak had interfered with Price.